Celebrate in the suburbs: Sparklers in MetroWest, Worcester and Providence

Thursday

Dec 27, 2007 at 12:01 AMDec 27, 2007 at 4:27 AM

Celebrate 2008: Those looking to avoid the huge crowds and parking crunch that comes with a New Year's Eve in Boston need not even leave MetroWest to ring in the start of 2008 with their loved ones.

D. Craig MacCormack

Those looking to avoid the huge crowds and parking crunch that comes with a New Year's Eve in Boston need not even leave MetroWest to ring in the start of 2008 with their loved ones.

The Framingham Historical Society and Museum, Sel De La Terre in the Natick Collection, Molly Malone's Pub in the Sheraton Framingham hotel and The Skelling Pub in Waltham are among the local hot spots that will be counting down to midnight Monday night.

For those feeling slightly more adventurous but still not wanting to head into Boston, First Night Worcester and Bright Night in Providence, R.I., offer two larger celebrations of the final minutes of 2007 and a fresh start for all.

First Night Worcester, now in its 26th year, has a tropical theme this year, after being unable to create snow sculptures for the past four years because the weather was too warm, said director Joyce Kressler.

Just their luck, she said, that the region would be blanketed with more snow so far this year than all of last winter, but such is life when plans begin a year ahead of time.

Organizers will bring 66 tons of beach sand to the DCU Center for the first sand sculpture contest, complete with island-centric activities and a Jimmy Buffett cover band, among many other attractions.

The DCU Center is one of 20 locations that will host activities for First Night Worcester, which generally attracts 50,000 people, half of those from 60 miles away or more.

The talent lineup includes jugglers at Mechanics Hall, gravity-defying acrobats, mimes, a bilingual storyteller and a poy fire spinner, among many others, said Kressler.

Buses make a continuous loop to allow revelers to hit all the places they want during the event, which runs from 3 p.m. to midnight. All activities other than the fireworks show are indoors, said Kressler, making their shows different than what's done in Boston.

"If we could figure out how to do (the fireworks) inside, we would," said Kressler with a laugh. "The depth of what we do is pretty extraordinary. We don't compete with each other."

For a complete schedule of events, log on to www.firstnightworcester.org. Buttons are $12 before Dec. 31 and $15 on New Year's Eve.

Bright Night, the offshoot of the now-defunct First Night Providence, is entering its fifth year after a group of artists organized it in late 2003. Some of the events are free, including fireworks shows at 5:35 p.m. and midnight, said festival director Adam Gertsacov.

Most of the performers at Bright Night - which attracted 20,000 people last year - come from within an hour of Providence. Among this year's attractions is Peter Gross, a magician from Framingham.

A kids' fair runs from 1 to 5 p.m., and the first 3,000 people with Bright Night tickets to go to the Providence College men's basketball game at 2 p.m. at the Dunkin Donuts Center get free admission.

Because organizers limit the number of tickets they sell, all who pay to go to Bright Night are guaranteed admission to at least one show, said Gertsacov.

The headliner for Bright Night is SLAMM, a percussion-based show that has been described as "Stomp on steroids." They will play three shows at the Providence Performing Arts Center during Bright Night.

Big Nazo puppets, Inca Son and the 25th anniversary of Pendragon are other highlights.

The full list of events is available at www.brightnight.org. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 on New Year's Eve.

"We have a number of great artists here and we wanted to bring the magic back so we focus on Rhode Island's most important cultural asset, which is its artists," said Gertsacov.

"We have some competition, but pound for pound, we have the best schedule. A lot of these artists are people who want to be part of the renaissance of Providence," he said.

Closer to home, the Framingham Historical Society and Museum is sponsoring its first New Year's Eve party at Village Hall.

Local DJ and radio and television personality David O'Leary, a Framingham resident, will spin tunes all night long while Framingham caterer Tastings will provide hearty appetizers that museum director Annie Murphy described as "more like a light supper" along with desserts and coffee.

The countdown to 2008 will be celebrated with a complimentary champagne toast at midnight and everyone will have hats and noisemakers to welcome the new year.

"We thought it would be a fun thing to do," said Murphy. "It's a good way to get the word out that we do fun things. We thought it would be nice for people not to have to go too far to enjoy the evening and support their local history museum."

Tickets are $70 for members and $75 for non-members with a cash bar. The proceeds will be used to help make Village Hall wheelchair accessible. For more information, call 508-872-3780 or log on to www.framinghamhistory.org.

Sel de la Terre in Natick will join its Boston counterparts in offering a six-course fixed-price ($95) menu starting at 4 p.m. and running through the start of 2008 if the demand is there, said general manager Ian Grossman.

Grossman describes the offering as "the most sumptuous menu we do all year," saying they hope to see similar success to the Boston restaurant, where 200 diners came through the doors last year.

Among the menu highlights are main courses such as farm raised veal osso bucco, andouille sausage stuffed rabbit, grilled rack of lamb and braised mushroom napoleon.

The Steve Sussman Trio will ring in the new year from 6:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.

"If people want to come in and eat before they go out for the night, that's fine," said Grossman. "If they want to stay and ring in the new year with us, that's fine too."

Sel de la Terre Natick is located at 1245 Worcester St. and serves lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. The restaurant accommodates 145 guests and has a private dining room for special events.

For all menus and other information, please visit www.seldelaterre.com or call 508-650-1800.

The Skellig on Moody Street in Waltham will have double the fun to close out 2007 and raise the curtain on 2008. They'll have a DJ in the front room of the Irish pub and local hip-hop and jazz band Primary Others in the back.

The cover charge for the night is $10, which includes party favors and a champagne toast at midnight. Call 781-647-0679 or log on to theskellig.com for more information.

At Molly Malone's Pub inside the Sheraton Framingham, the Zydetones will ring in the new year with upbeat Mardi Gras jams and classic New Orleans rhythm and blues.

The Zydetones feature Ken Hiatt on accordion, John Kelly on guitar and vocals, Oren Rosen on drums, Aaron Schindler on bass and Wendy Kinal who doubles as lead vocalist and scrub board player.

The band began providing the music for Boston Zydeco Group dances, and built their fan base with shows across the region, including Framingham gigs at the Happy Swallow, Pleasant Cafe, Bruburgers, and The Chili Head BBQ Company.

Clips of their music can be found at www.myspace.com/zydetones. The New Year's Eve show starts at 9 p.m. The Sheraton is offering special packages by calling 866-716-8120. Tickets for the show are available at 508-270-1939.

Craig MacCormack can be reached at 508-626-4429 or cmaccorm@cnc.com.

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